Changes

===Taishô through World War II===

===Taishô through World War II===

By the 1920s, Tokyo was a wholly modern city, a major center of urban & popular cultural developments more or less cutting-edge with New York and other world cities. The city's streets were filled with movie theaters, jazz bars, cafés, and the like, fashion trends brought the "modern boy" and flapper-like "modern girl" (''moga''), and Art Deco and other artistic movements were active in Tokyo just as they were in New York and Paris. The city had already become integrated with many international networks already since decades earlier, with the first YMCA in Japan, for example, opening in Tokyo as early as [[1880]].

By the 1920s, Tokyo was a wholly modern city, a major center of urban & popular cultural developments more or less cutting-edge with New York and other world cities. The city's streets were filled with movie theaters, jazz bars, cafés, and the like, fashion trends brought the "modern boy" and flapper-like "modern girl" (''moga''), and Art Deco and other artistic movements were active in Tokyo just as they were in New York and Paris. The city had already become integrated with many international networks already since decades earlier, with the first YMCA in Japan, for example, opening in Tokyo as early as [[1880]].

Tokyo Prefecture (''Tôkyô-fu''), previously an urban prefecture, or ''fu'', on par with the status [[Osaka prefecture]] (''Ôsaka-fu'') and [[Kyoto prefecture]] (''Kyôto-fu'') retain today, was reorganized into Tokyo City (''Tôkyô-shi'') in 1932, and for a time Tokyo was governed by a mayor.<ref>"[http://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%93%81%E5%B7%9D Shinagawa]." ''Sekai daihyakka jiten'' 世界大百科事典. Hitachi Solutions, 2012.</ref> It was reorganized again, however, in 1943 into Tokyo Metropolitan Prefecture (''Tôkyô-to''), becoming the only Metropolitan Prefecture (''-to'') in the country, and retaining that status today.

Tokyo Prefecture (''Tôkyô-fu''), previously an urban prefecture, or ''fu'', on par with the status [[Osaka prefecture]] (''Ôsaka-fu'') and [[Kyoto prefecture]] (''Kyôto-fu'') retain today, was reorganized into Tokyo City (''Tôkyô-shi'') in 1932, and for a time Tokyo was governed by a mayor.<ref>"[http://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%93%81%E5%B7%9D Shinagawa]." ''Sekai daihyakka jiten'' 世界大百科事典. Hitachi Solutions, 2012.</ref> It was reorganized again, however, in 1943 into Tokyo Metropolitan Prefecture (''Tôkyô-to''), becoming the only Metropolitan Prefecture (''-to'') in the country, and retaining that status today.

The last year of the war saw Allied bombing raids destroy much of the city. Though efforts were made to not target the Imperial Palace, for fear that its destruction and/or the death of the Emperor would lead the Japanese people to greater nationalistic determination to go down fighting, much of the city was left completely in ruins. Winds spread the flames, as they had done in countless fires which ravaged Edo and other Japanese cities over the centuries, and the fires surged through neighborhood after neighborhood of mostly wood & paper homes. Some sixteen square miles of the city was turned to ash. Hundreds of thousands of people were killed, and by some estimates more than two million were left homeless.<ref>"[http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2015/03/15/editorials/legacy-great-tokyo-air-raid/ Legacy of the Great Tokyo Air Raid]," ''Japan Times'', 15 March 2015.; Warren Kozak, "[http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB124234559143121723 LeMay and the Tragedy of War]," ''Wall Street Journal'', 9 March 2015.</ref>  

The last year of the war saw Allied bombing raids destroy much of the city. Though efforts were made to not target the Imperial Palace, for fear that its destruction and/or the death of the Emperor would lead the Japanese people to greater nationalistic determination to go down fighting, much of the city was left completely in ruins. Winds spread the flames, as they had done in countless fires which ravaged Edo and other Japanese cities over the centuries, and the fires surged through neighborhood after neighborhood of mostly wood & paper homes. Some sixteen square miles of the city was turned to ash. Hundreds of thousands of people were killed, and by some estimates more than two million were left homeless.<ref>"[http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2015/03/15/editorials/legacy-great-tokyo-air-raid/ Legacy of the Great Tokyo Air Raid]," ''Japan Times'', 15 March 2015.; Warren Kozak, "[http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB124234559143121723 LeMay and the Tragedy of War]," ''Wall Street Journal'', 9 March 2015.</ref>

===Postwar to Today===

===Postwar to Today===